


The Soulmark of the Girl Next Door

by fanwit



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Bittersweet Ending, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, it's a sweet and upbeat fic mostly honest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-02
Updated: 2019-10-02
Packaged: 2020-11-15 11:55:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20865803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanwit/pseuds/fanwit
Summary: Alastor and Arthur discuss soulmarks with others in 12 Grimmauld Place and the Girl Next Door is not a good subject for anybody.





	The Soulmark of the Girl Next Door

**Author's Note:**

> Phew, this fic was written in winter and sat in my drafts for a very long time. Every time I looked at it, it always struck a chord somewhere deep inside. And I hope it does the same for you. My [tumblr](https://fanwit.tumblr.com).

When Alastor was exactly thirteen years old (at four o'clock in the evening), his right eye turned blue. He knows this because he was looking in the mirror and saw it happen. His first reaction was to assume the mirror was up to its tricks again but upon hearing its denials, accepted his soulmark had just appeared. He hadn't told his parents, he had just gone up to his bedroom and looked for a pair of sunglasses. When they had asked down at the dinner table, he had told them the sunglasses were charmed to display nothing and he was practicing for if he ever lost his sight. 

"What'd ya think when you got your soulmark?" Tonks asks, leaning onto the bannister. They are waiting for Molly to finish up in the dining room and nobody is willing to ask her if they can go in yet. 

"You just get yours?" Shacklebolt asks and Tonks makes a face. Lupin looks interested but looks down with a flush when he notices Alastor looking at him. 

"No, that was ages ago," Tonks says with a shrug. She glances over to Lupin then to Arthur. "How 'bout you, Arthur?" 

Arthur looks towards the dining room then shrugs. 

"Don't recall exactly." Arthur shoves his hands into his pockets. Alastor wants to ask him what his soulmark is but he shouldn't. "Think I was around fourteen." 

Black makes a strangled sound and Alastor glances over. "You don't remember when?" Black looks incredulous. "It's a bit of a big deal, best thing to happen to anybody." 

"Hm, had a lot happening." 

"At _fourteen_?" 

Shacklebolt jumps in before Sirius can push further. "How about you, Mad-Eye?" Alastor looks at him. "First thought?" 

_Oh, fuck,_ Alastor had thought as he leaned closer to the mirror. The mirror had confirmed his fear, it had been a soulmark. And then Alastor had wished for a better soulmark. 

Alastor scowls at Shacklebolt. 

Black cuts in, "_I_ was sixteen and it was right after a Quidditch game." He looks triumphant. "It was a timer." There's a sharp inhale. 

They all eye each other and Alastor wonders if he can technically ask about their soulmarks now. 

"Right." Lupin shifts nervously. "Ah, so, Arthur, did you hear about the-" 

Tonks interrupts, "Is it still going?" Black slumps instantly. 

"Quidditch game last night!" Lupin shouts this and everybody hushes him. Shacklebolt eyes the curtains fearfully. Alastor remembers the last time Mrs. Black had come out and he is not looking forward to that. 

Black is still slumped over but raises his head. 

"It's frozen right now," Black manages. "Reckon my stint in Azkaban messed it up." 

"That's odd." Tonks looks down. "That shouldn't be a factor." 

"Maybe it is for my soulmate." 

"Quidditch game was sure good, wasn't it?!" Lupin grabs Arthur's shoulder. Arthur’s wide-eyed and looks frantically at the others. "Please just talk to me." 

"What's yours?" Black steps forward, closer to Tonks, and Tonks looks up, startled. "Your soulmark?" 

"Oh, I don't-" 

"You're asking about mine, seems fair you tell us about yours." 

Tonks hunches over and mumbles something undecipherable. Someone should do something. Alastor looks around and sees nobody doing anything for her. 

"Black, lay off her," Alastor orders and Black steps back with a scowl. 

"It's only fair." 

"If she isn't talking, then she isn't." 

Shacklebolt looks at Black. His eyes are looking around warily, almost as though as he’s considering something. 

"I can see what they write on themselves," Shacklebolt blurts out. His shoulders are tense, just like the tension in the air. 

"You don't know the gender?" Black sneers. Shacklebolt shrugs, putting on a cocky grin. 

"Not something you write on yourself, is it?" 

Arthur stifles a laugh and looks nervously at Alastor. Alastor just stares at him blankly. 

"Can they see what you write?" Tonks asks and Arthur looks away. 

"No." Shacklebolt sighs. "Wish they could, it'd be a lot easier." 

Black nods. "Not as easy as having a name," he says next. "That's the easiest method." 

"I wish I had that," Lupin says wistfully. "Better than guessing and hoping." 

Tonks pats Lupin on the shoulder lightly before looking back to the group. "Some people have that and don't ever do anything about it, can you believe it?" Tonks shakes her head. "If I had it, I wouldn't be a coward, I'd do something." 

Arthur stares down at the floor. Shacklebolt frowns and cocks his head. 

"Being afraid is reasonable, I suppose," Shacklebolt points out. "Did you hear about that story where it was the girl next door the whole time?" 

"The one where they never got together?" 

"That's the weird thing, knowing the person and being with them all that time and never doing anything." 

Alastor's mother had had his father's name and she had always hoped Alastor would have a name as well. 

"It's so much easier," she had mused as she ran her fingers through Alastor's hair. "You'd love it." 

She rarely spoke of her feelings about her Connor Moody growing up. The only time she did was when Alastor had pressed and she admitted she was afraid Connor wouldn't accept her. But she had rapidly changed the subject to Alastor's new dresses he still hadn't worn. 

Arthur raises his head slowly. He opens his mouth, shuts it, clears his throat, then looks at Alastor. "Guess it's all about timing," he says finally. 

"Timing?" Black snorts. "That girl just didn't like him." 

"Guess we heard very different stories then." 

Alastor had been twenty-nine when he lost his right eye. His glamour had weakened after what had felt like hours of torture and _they_ had thought it'd be funny to ruin his soulmark. They had thought a lot of things funny that Alastor hadn't. They had ruined a lot of things Alastor had thought they couldn't. 

He had been thirty-two when he met Arthur. The first thing Arthur had asked about was not his eye but when he thought the Aurors would be done because Arthur had some things he'd like to do, thank you very much. 

He was thirty-six when Arthur finally told him a story about the girl next door. 

"Mine's gibberish," Lupin says slowly. "My mum always thought it was the first thing my soulmate wrote." He doesn't move to show his soulmark. 

Shacklebolt makes a sympathetic noise. "Nobody's handwriting looks like their childhood writing.” 

"I just hope my soulmate's got a better mark." 

"Anybody here met their soulmate?" Black asks. "Arthur, you don't count." 

"I never count," Arthur whispers and Alastor's fairly certain nobody's supposed to hear him. 

Alastor claps his hands, interrupting Black’s attempt at getting Lupin to fess up. "That's assuming Molly's his soulmate," Alastor declares and everybody falls silent. They all stare at Alastor. Arthur's eyes are wide and fearful. 

Alastor was thirty-six and Arthur was sitting on the couch, eyes fixed on the coffee table in front of him. "Ever heard that story?" Arthur had asked and looked over to Alastor from his position on the couch. Alastor had moved to sit next to him on the couch and Arthur had leaned in. 

"Probably, I've heard a lot of stories." 

"The one about the girl next door?" 

There was a boy named Hank Smith who lived down in Bakewell (or Dalkey or Nikko or Kenmare or Portree or any town one liked). He lived on a dirt road (or near the river or on the farm) in a small brown house. He lived with only his parents but don't fret, he had friends. One of his friends, his best friend, lived right next door and was a girl named Jenny. They often spent time together and were practically inseparable. 

Then when Hank turned seventeen, he got his soulmark. Jenny drifted further and further off and soon Hank found himself with a new best friend. Hank began dating, looking for his soulmate. His soulmark was not an easy one but he was positive he would find his soulmate. He went on a very lovely date with a girl named Mary and they soon became engaged. To Hank, Mary seemed like the perfect girl and she matched his soulmark. However, he did not know Mary had a soulmark that was ticking away to when she would meet her soulmate. There were quite several things he didn't know. 

On the day before the wedding, Hank was beside himself with excitement. He truly loved Mary and he knew Mary loved him as well. 

The group breaks out in protests. "Well, of course Molly's his soulmate!" Black splutters. "Why the hell would he be with her if she wasn't?" 

They all nod in agreement. 

Now, this is where the story often differs. For some, they prefer this story. 

It had been a rather dry season. So when a spark came, it was enough to set everything aflame. Hank's house had caught fire and Jenny, who still lived next door, came running. Everyone stood outside, waiting for Hank to come out. He never did and Jenny had collapsed in tears. Mary went to comfort her but Jenny had forgotten something. She had forgotten to bring a jacket so her soulmark was fully exposed. Mary saw Jenny had a name. 

Jenny had drifted away from Hank because she hadn't recognized Hank's soulmark. She had been terrified Hank wasn't her soulmate. Now she regretted everything she had done. She should've stayed with Hank, confessed her crush, her love. 

The name was Hank Smith. So this is the moral, always be honest or your soulmate will be gone forever. 

"Of course." Alastor backs down. "Just, it does happen." 

"_Why_?" 

Alastor's first step upon being allowed out of St. Mungo's was to try to find a replacement for his eye. His parents would've told him to and despite them not being family anymore, Alastor had to admit they had good advice. Others would view his eye as a weakness so Alastor had to find a way to make it a strength. His only desire for the eye was for it to be the same as his soulmark, a shade of blue. 

Arthur jumps to Alastor’s defense surprisingly enough. "Maybe because it seemed like the best option, I suppose," Arthur suggests. "Or they just fell in love." 

When Hank Smith was seventeen, Jenny got her soulmark. She went over to Hank's house where he was outside with his new best friend. Hank was not just with his friend, he was with a new girl Jenny had never seen. 

She asked to talk with Hank and Hank agreed so soon they were in Hank's bedroom. Jenny pulled up her sleeve and Hank saw his name. He was shocked. 

"But that's what your soulmate is for, why would you give that up?" 

Molly steps into view. "Dining room's free now, sorry about the wait!" Black narrows his eyes. 

"Mol-" 

"Thank-you-so-much!" Lupin pushes Black into the dining room past Molly. They all shuffle in, leaving Alastor and Arthur standing in the hall. Molly smiles at them and goes back into the dining room. 

Hank shook his head. He was very much sorry but he didn't love Jenny like that. So Jenny went home with a broken heart. Not every soulmate story is happy, don't count on having a happy ending. 

"What's your soulmark?" Alastor asks. Arthur winces. 

"It's not much." 

"I'm right though, aren't I?" 

"We care about each other. I didn't think..." 

"Who was it?" 

Arthur had been on the couch and he had looked up at Alastor. He told Alastor the story of the girl next door. The one where Jenny and Hank had a fight so Jenny stopped talking to him, the one where Hank and Mary had fallen in love and Jenny did not want to intrude. The one where Jenny gets her happy ending with someone named Timmy. For not every soulmate story has a happy ending but you can get a happy ending. 

Arthur blinks and blinks. _Tears_, Alastor realizes. 

"Nobody I had a chance with." 

"Did you try?" 

Arthur takes a shaky breath. "Timing." 

When Alastor had been thirty, he met a man with blue eyes. He had been entranced and though the man did not have a matching soulmark, they gave it a try. They found they were hopelessly in love and Alastor did not care about his soulmate anymore. 

When Alastor had been thirty-four, the man had left. The man had found his soulmate. 

"I had kids..." Arthur shakes his head. "I couldn't do that, couldn't just leave Molly and them behind by the time my soulmate was ready." 

"It's always about timing with you, isn't it?" 

"I got a Timmy." Arthur lets out a weak laugh. 

"Never liked that story." 

"Yeah." 

They enter the dining room with no further words. They don't need any. 


End file.
